Means for sealing or unsealing cans.



no. 629,843. v Patented Aug. I, I899.

H. n. ALLEN, m. MEANS FOR SEALING 0R UNSEAUNG'CANS.

(Application filed Nov. 7, 1898.)

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HORACE RUSSEL ALLEN, JR., Oil" INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

MEANS FOR SEALINGOR UNSEALING CANS.

SPECIFICATION forming part Of Letters Patent N0; 629,843, dated August1, 1899.

Application filed November 7, 1898 Serial No. 695,720. (No model.) I ITo all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, HORACE .RUSSEL AL- LEN, Jr., a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Indianapolis, in the county of' Marion and State ofIndiana, have'invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means forand Methods of Scaling or Unsealing Cans, of which the following is aspecification.

The object of my said-invention is to provide a means for sealing cansofthevariety commonly used for packing and preserving articles offood-such as fruits, meats, relishes, and the like-whereby such cans canbe easily and quickly opened when it is desired to use their contents. 7v

In carrying out my invention I use. a sealing material which isimpervious to air and water, but which will become fluid, preferably bythe application of hot Water, sothat' whatever is held thereby will bereleased.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which are made a part hereof'andon which similar reference characters indicate similar part-s, Figure 1is a perspective view of a can embodying my invention, and Fig. 2 acentral sectional view of the same.

In said drawings the portions marked A represent the body of the can;13, the bottom thereof '3 G, the permanent top; D, a removable capforming a part of the top, and E a spring arranged within the can andbearing against the under side of the cap.

The portions A and B are or may be of any usual or desired form orconstruction and need no special description. The top 0 is also in manyrespects of an ordinary form, but

is preferably given a peculiar formation at its inner edge. Some sealingmaterials of the character which I design to employ, while perfectlyefficient otherwise, do not always adhere to the surfaces to which theyare applied as perfectly and strongly as is desirable.

I therefore form an annular groove in the inner edge of the top 0, whichgroove is adapted to contain the edge of the'cap and the sealingmaterial, and I cause the upper edge 0 of the outer wall ofthis grooveto overhang its cavity slightly, so that when the sealing material ispoured into the groove and becomes set it cannot escape upwardly untilit is returned to its fluid condition. The extreme inner edge 0' is.curved upwardly a suitable distance to complete the groove.

The cap D is preferably in the form of a disk somewhat concave on itsunder side,while its edge should be bent downwardly to enter the grooveprovided therefor around the in ner edge of the top 0. When inserted inplace, the sealing material m is poured around in the groove, sealingthe can tightly.

At some suitable point and in a suitable manner within the can, underthe cap, I secure the spring E, the upper or free part whereof projectsup into the opening to be covered by the cap D. When said cap is put inplace, said spring is thereby compressed or forced downwardly. When,however, the sealing material is restored to a fluid condition, thisspring acts upon the cap and instantly throws it out of position, thusopcning the can. Thisis a very desirable feature of my invention, asotherwise there would be great danger that the sealing material wouldbecome set again after being rendered fluid before the cap could beotherwise removed. I have shown a plain bar-spring in the drawings, butobviously any applicable form of spring may be used.

In sealinga can by myimproved method (the 'contentshaving, of course,first been placed within the can through the opening in the top) thecapD is placed in the position shown and the sealing material aninserted. When it is desired to open the can, all that is necessary tobe done is to pour hot water upon the cap D and the sealing material onuntil the latter becomes heated sufficiently tobe reduced to its fluidcondition, when, as above explained, the spring E will instantly throwthe cap ofi. This saves all the labor of cutting through the cap ortopwith such instruments as can-openers besides saving the can inperfect condition for future use and enabling the cans to be reusedindefinitely.

Instead of the hot water I may after filling the groove partially withthefusible sealing material fill the remainder of the space with acombustible material which will constitute a fuse which may be lightedwhen it is desired to open the can, and the effect will be the same aswith the hot water. I prefer, however, to use the material acted uponbest by hot water and to use hot water in the opening operation for thereason that it is more convenient and less expensive, as hot water isalways available in kitchens, where cans of this variety are commonlyopened.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination, in a can, of a top for the can having an openingtherein with an annular groove formed around said opening, a cap theedges whereof are adapted to be placed within said groove, a springmounted to bear against the under side of said cap when inplace,andafusible material adapted to be melted by hot water inserted insaid groove between the edge of the cap and the surrounding wall of thegroove in the top, substantially as shown and described.

2. The combination,in a can,of the top having an opening with an annulargroove surrounding the same, a cap adapted to be fitted within saidannular groove and there secured by a fusible material, and a springsecured below the cap with its free portion bearing against the underside of the cap, whereby, I

when the fusible material is reduced to fluid condition, said springwill operate to throw off the cap, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination, in a can, of the usual body and bottom, a top Chaving an'opening therein with an annular groove around the edges ofsaid opening, the outer wall of said groove overhanging the cavitythereof somewhat, a cap the edge whereof is adapted to be inserted insaid groove, a spring mounted to bear against the under side of said capwhen'in place, and afusible material adapted to be inserted between theedge of the cap and the overhanging wall of the groove, whereby,

when said material is inserted and set it is prevented from separationuntil returned to a fluid state. 7

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my,

